DeepSeek’s AI Triumph Shouldn’t Deep-Six Chip Curbs: Editorial

Chinese startup DeepSeek shocked markets this week with powerful artificial intelligence models that might have been produced at a fraction of the cost of competitors’ technology, despite US restrictions on the most advanced semiconductors. That’s a genuine accomplishment. It’s not an argument for lifting those sanctions.

The hype over DeepSeek comes just as the White House reviews sweeping new rules intended to control the spread of AI chips and data centers around the world. This AI “diffusion framework,” introduced by the previous administration, sets limits on which countries can access top-shelf semiconductors and in what quantities. The US and 18 ...